P65m defective structure to be occupied by Govt Depts

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Monday May 2, 2011 00:00

The building was bought as part of continued efforts to secure more office space to mitigate the acute shortage of office accommodation for government ministries and departments, which had resulted in high office rental expenditures of over P105 million in the last financial year alone.

Meantime five years since the building has been idle, the two Ministries of Trade and Industry and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) are reported to be ready to move in. However, the Auditor General in his latest report said he is not aware how the outstanding matters of the condition of the building and making good the defects, had been resolved between government and the developers. Amongst other issues, there was need to correct the slope ramp to the basement parking, as well as provision of fire escape stairs to the building, provision of necessary width to the staircase, provision of additional parking, provision of facilities for disabled persons to the bathrooms, as well as correction of corner windows to open.

However the developers refused to do anything about the defects on the grounds that the works were not part of the sale agreement and further that the building had complied with the building regulations.

The developers have already been paid the full purchase price of P65,955,147 and the property transferred to government in July 2006, notwithstanding that the release of those funds had been conditional upon the satisfactory execution of the outstanding works. 

Now six years since the government paid for the building and waited in vain for the developer to fix the building, the two government ministries that paid for the office block are preparing to move in despite the sorry state of the structure.

According to the latest auditor general's report for March 2011, at the time of writing, some five years since the initial purchase date, the building had still not been occupied, although from the audit observations of work in progress on site, arrangements are underway for both the Ministry and the IEC to move into the premises.

A structural survey carried out by the Department of Buildings and Engineering Services had identified some defects which had to be remedied before the purchase agreement could be concluded. To a certain extent the building is reported to not comply with building regulations.